Sunday, May 12, 2013

Unbeknownst to many folks outside the Amish Mennonite population in America, Pinecraft, Florida---a village tucked away in the heart of Sarasota---is the vacation paradise of the Plain People. Unlike any other Plain community in the world, this village is a virtual melting pot of Amish and Mennonites from around the world, intermingled with people, like author Sherry Gore's family, who live there year-round. Gore has put together a cookbook that represents the people who make Pinecraft unique. With hundreds of easy-to-prepare recipes, 16 full-color photographs and black-and-white photographs throughout, this cookbook includes traditional favorites such as Sweet Potato Sweet Mash and Mrs. Byler's Glazed Donuts, as well as Florida favorites including Fried Alligator Nuggets, Grilled Lime Fish Fillets, and Strawberry Mango Smoothies. Interspersed with the recipes are true-life stories about births, engagements, weddings, deaths, funerals, celebrations, wildlife encounters, and accidents told through years of Sherry's Letters from Home column published in The Budget, the Amish newspaper. This delightful cookbook offers readers a faith-based, family-focused perspective of the simple way of life of the Plain People. It is truly a breath of fresh air from Sarasota, Florida!

"Simply Delicious Amish Cooking: Recipes and Stories from the Amish of Sarasota, Florida" is a true delight from cover to cover. Author Sherry Gore offers over 300 recipes, which range from traditional Amish favorites to seafood and other recipes with a Florida influence, and many cooking tips and helpful hints. Mouth-watering vivid color photographs of many of the prepared recipes are also included. Compiled over a three-year period during which her daughter was often hospitalized, the recipes and stories were shared by Amish communities across the country. The book also includes a history of the Amish and Mennonite orders from their origins in Switzerland to their beginnings in America. The Pinecraft Community in Sarasota, Florida started in 1926, and is now a thriving community and popular Winter retreat for Amish and Mennonite families. According to Sherry Gore, Amish food is special because "it is traditional American cooking at its best", and it "makes visitors, whether old friends or strangers, feel welcome". Here is a sampling of some the delightful recipes which are shared: "Dutch Dinner Rolls"; "Morning Glory Muffins"; "Farmer's Skillet"; "Cheeseburger Soup"; "Hot Bacon Dressing for Dandelion Greens"; "Amish Church Dinner"; "Hand-Breaded Pork Chops and Creamy Country Gravy"; "Fabulous Grilled Fish and Shrimp Dinner"; "Sand Dollar Sugar Cookies"; "Three-Layer Strawberries and Cream Cake"; and "Zucchini Relish". I was quite delighted to see a recipe for my grandfather's favorite dessert: "Premium Gingerbread with Old-Fashioned Lemon Sauce"--topped with whipped cream, of course!

Review Copy Gratis Zondervan Books via Booksneeze

Sherry Gore is the author of Simply Delicious Amish Cooking (formerly titled Taste of Pinecraft) and is the editor-in-chief of Cooking and Such magazine, which has been called 'completely heartwarming and visually stunning' by Amish novelist Cindy Woodsmall . Sherry is also a weekly scribe for the national edition of the 120-year-old Amish newspaper, The Budget. The National Geographic Channel featured Sherry prominently in the 2012 debut season of their documentary series, Amish: Out of Order. Sherry is a year-round resident of beautiful, sun-kissed Sarasota, Florida, the vacation paradise of the Plain People. She has three children and is a member of a Beachy Amish Mennonite church. She's a caregiver to her twenty-two-year-old daughter, a Sunday school teacher, a cooking show host, and an official pie contest judge. As an author and longtime resident of Pinecraft, Sherry has worked with local Sarasota County government and various travel groups to generate interest for this unique and beautiful village.

About Me

I am a lifelong bookworm, and I became an online reviewer and blogger through my great love of all things books. I read a wide variety of genres, and I regularly post reviews at Amazon.com, Good Reads, Library Thing, Red Room, Google Plus, LinkedIn, Facebook, and other sites. I can be found all over the web blogging about books, and also food, fiction, family, friends and felines. Books are my second language. I ''book-speak' with friends, family, coworkers, and anyone who will pause long enough to listen. One of my goals is to promote literacy and put books in the hands of everyone who wants to read. There are still many people in the United States and the world who are struggling with literacy. Improving one's reading skills boosts self-esteem, opens up the world, enables informed decision making, and brings forth all kinds of new opportunities. People who read for pleasure have good imaginations, an ability to think outside the box, and the vision to go beyond black & white to see the shades of gray.